‘This first major collection of radical moving-image practices in the 21st century marks an aggressive new phase in the resistance against capitalist commodity culture. Remarkable for its intelligence, originality, accessibility, and especially for its global comprehensiveness, it will be of great value for activists, scholars and teachers, and indeed everyone interested in the struggle for a more equal and less exploitative socialist world’. (David E. James, Professor, Division of Cinema & Media Studies, University of Southern California on Contemporary Radical Film Culture: Networks, Organisations and Activists)

Book Description

Comprising essays from some of the leading scholars and practitioners in the field, this is the first book to investigate twenty-first century radical film practices across production, distribution and exhibition at a global level.

This book explores global radical film culture in all its geographic, political and aesthetic diversity. It is inspired by the work of the Radical Film Network (RFN), an organisation established in 2013 to support the growth and sustainability of politically engaged film culture around the world. Since then, the RFN has grown rapidly, and now consists of almost 200 organisations across four continents, from artists’ studios and production collectives to archives, distributors and film festivals. With this foundation, the book engages with contemporary radical film cultures in Africa, Asia, China, Europe, the Middle East as well as North and South America, and connects key historical moments and traditions with the present day. Topics covered include artists’ film and video, curation, documentary, feminist and queer film cultures, film festivals and screening practices, network-building, policy interventions and video-activism.

For students, researchers and practitioners, this fascinating and wide-ranging book sheds new light on the political potential of the moving image and represents the activists and organisations pushing radical film forward in new and exciting directions.

For more information about the Radical Film Network, visit www.radicalfilmnetwork.com.